Finals!
I’ve been incredibly finished and sleep deprived the last week and so havn’t really had a chance to update my blog. Yesterday we had a 7 page paper due, for which we had to interview 4 Jordanians. Today we had a 10-page paper due, written as a “think-piece.” I wrote that whole paper yesteray and stayed up so late writing it that by the time I walked down the street with Ian to the 24-hour computer lab, the first call to prayer was sounding. Tomorrow is our 3-hour final in Arab Histories, after which everything for classes will be over. The ladies are going to the Pasha Turkish Bath in the afternoon and then the group is going out for one final dinner. I spent four hours today studying and smoking shisha at the Doors Cafe with Jessica and Monica.
I’ve also been busy trying to get last minute gifts and trying to find somewhere to exchange my dinars for Syrian pounds. No luck so far. I got a pair of fake Diesels in Swefiyya for 15JD, which a tailor hemmed for free. Monica got a pair of fake Puma’s for her sister (Fumas!) and then we hit up the silver market for silver literally almost as cheap as dirt. I got a silver ring with turquoise for 4.5JD.
Here’s what I’m planning for travels. I’ve bought a lite, long-sleeved and loose black shirt and have a pair of all-purpose pants. I bought some new tennis-like shoes and Monica’s also going to lend me some of her long-sleeved shirts. I bought a fake Adidas duffle for extra stuff and will bring that, my backback, my Arabic phrase book, sunscreen, and a guidebook. Also, Marquez’s autobiography and some crackers, socks, and underwear. I thought about wearing my pink hejab I bought in al-Baqa’a, but somewhat, people might not understand if I didn’t speak Arabic. Let me know if there’s suggestions for anything else for travel.
I will try to update my blog during our travels to Syria and Lebanon in the coming weeks, even if briefly. See everyone soon.
Tags: Amman, Jordan
Katelyn
I’d wear the Hejab. I think the experience of “passing” as an insider would be very important.
What is shisha? I might want some. 🙂
Shisha is tobacco smoked out of a water pipe, or hookah. It comes in different flavors, like cherry, strawberry, or melon, and is a form of socializing in the Arab world.